CIS 160: Intro to the Creation of 3-D Movies and Graphics

Course Details

  • Course title: Introduction to the Creation of 3-D Movies and Graphics
  • Catalog course description: This course will introduce students to creating three dimensional graphics. Students will learn to create three dimensional models, and add texture, lighting, and structure. Students will learn how to animate models and create a movie. Students will work individually or in teams to create and publicly present a final project. ART. Four credits. Offered May Term of odd numbered years.
  • Course level student learning objectives (SLOs):
    • Technical
      • Learn to model in three dimensions
      • Learn to texture 3D object
      • Learn to light a 3D scene
      • Learn to animate a 3D scene
    • Artistic
      • Learn to express perspectives, concepts, and ideas using 3D computer graphics as a medium.
      • Reflect and think critically about other’s artistic works and your own.
      • Understand the value of the creative process.
      • Express yourself using your own artistic creation.
  • Textbook: http://3d-graphics-class.readthedocs.io/ and videos from https://cgcookie.com/

Instructor

Schedule

Class meets every weekday from 8:15 am until 11:15 am, Monday May 3st to Friday May 21, 2021

Approximate schedule:

  • Day 01 - Introduction and Blender Basics
  • Day 02 - Meshes
  • Day 03 - Textures and Painting
  • Day 04 - Shading
  • Day 05 - Lighting
  • Day 06 - Modifiers
  • Day 07 - Project Plan
  • Day 08 - Animation
  • Day 09 - Rendering / What is Art?
  • Day 10 - Work on Project
  • Day 11 - Work on Project / Lumi
  • Day 12 - Work on Project
  • Day 13 - Work on Project
  • Day 14 - Work on Project
  • Day 15 - Final Presentations

Assignments:

  • Assignment 1 - How Did The Artist Convey The Message? (10 pts)
  • Assignment 2 - Primitive Modeling (10 pts)
  • Assignment 3 - Back-Story (10 pts)
  • Assignment 4 - Animated Rocket (10 pts)
  • Assignment 5 - Modifiers (10 pts)
  • Assignment 6 - Final Project Plan (10 pts)
  • Assignment 7 - Animation (10 pts)
  • Assignment 8 - What is Art? (10 pts)
  • Final Project (100 pts)

Student Assessment

Grading

Grades will be calculated on a percent scale. The percentage is calculated by total points earned, divided by total points possible. If there is an attendance penalty, then that is subtracted next.

Danger

Simpson’s Scholar/Moodle site shows can show the wrong grade, for the two reasons below.

  • Scholar will not show any attendance penalty. You can look up your attendance on Scholar.
  • If there is a missing grade that hasn’t been set at zero, then Scholar will not show that in the average. For example, if there are 10 assignments, each worth 100 points, but one is missing, Scholar will show your average as 100 instead of 90. I do try to go back and enter zero on missing assignments so Scholar shows the correct grade, but sometimes that isn’t practical.

If you want to calculate your grade, total up your points, divide by the total possible. Then take into account any attendance policy penalty. See the attendance policy.

Appealing an assignment grade: Please do this within a week or two of the grade being posted. Please regularly check for missing assignment grades. After final grades are posted, I’ll only re-examine assignments turned in during finals. I’m not going back to look at early assignments. Turning in tech assignments can be more complex than turning in a paper, so it is critical to notice right away if you are missing a piece.

Appealing your final grade: If you believe your final grade is in error, please go through the effort of calculating the grade yourself. Total up points earned and the total points possible. Calculate the percentage. Check your attendance. Include that information when contacting the instructor.

Grading Scale

Grades are not rounded. For example, 92.99% is considered an A-, and 93.00% is an A.

Percent Grade
100-93% A
92-90% A-
89-87% B+
86-83% B
82-80% B-
79-77% C+
76-73% C
72-70% C-
69-67% D+
66-63% D
62-60% D-
59-0% F

Late-Work/Make-up Work Policy

  • All work must be turned in on-time.
  • Late work is usually not accepted, unless approved ahead of time by the instructor. (If it is just a few minutes or hours late, you might be ok. Depends on when I check.)
  • All work must be turned in by the end of the time scheduled for the class final. No extensions beyond this date/time are given unless you have a form filled out and signed for an “incomplete.”
  • Extra-credit / make up work is not offered.
  • If you need to use the lab for doing work, make sure to understand when the lab is open. The McNeill lab is usually closed on Sunday nights, and if an assignments is due Monday morning that can be bad. Not knowing when the lab is open is not accepted as an excuse.

May Term Attendance/Participation Policy

Missing classes will lower your overall grade. The scale:

  • One class: 1% lower
  • Two classes: 4% lower
  • Three classes: 7% lower
  • Four classes: 11% lower
  • Five or more: F

Excused absences are those approved by the Academic Dean, or by prior permission of the instructor. Absences for sporting event functions are normally run through Dean’s office. E-mail me that you will be gone so that I can check you off as excused.

Note: To be counted as attending class, the student must be present when the instructor takes attendance. If a student leaves early during class, he or she will be counted as absent.

Assignments

There will be eight assignments, plus a final project. Each assignment is worth ten points, for a total of ninety points. The final assignment is worth one hundred points. The class will be graded out of 180 points total.

Course Assessment

Engaged Citizenship Grids

The Arts (AR)

The arts are a vital component of human existence. They provide an opportunity to experience and express the world in ways distinct from other disciplines. The Arts component of the General Education curriculum focuses on learning through participation in artistic creation. By taking a course that engages students in the act of creation, students will develop an understanding of art as a constructed means for communication, designed to reveal certain meanings and ideas or to elicit specific responses. Students are given the opportunity to develop their imaginations and to develop their ability to express themselves.

The general education program prepares students to become engaged citizens by exploring enduring questions about ourselves, civilization, and the world and by developing the skills necessary to shape and create a diverse and just community. As an organizing principle, citizenship encourages an emphasis on issues of personal integrity, moral responsibility and social justice. The arts have long been instrumental in the exploration and pursuit of engaged citizenship.

A student who completes an AR course will be able to…

Student Learning Objective (SLO) Class activities directly relating to this SLO Student work to be evaluated for this SLO
AR SLO1. Express perspectives, concepts and/or ideas through an artistic medium Lessons, assignments Final Project
AR SLO2. Reflect and think critically about one’s own and others’ artistic work(s) employing vocabulary and evaluative skills appropriate to the genre. Lecture, assignments Reflection turned in with final project
AR SLO3. Articulate the value of the creative process Lecture, assignments Reflection turned in with final project

Contact Hours and Learning Time

  • In class time: 3 hours per day, 3 weeks, 5 days per week = 45 hours
  • Out-of-class video tutorial time: 2 hours per day, 3 weeks, 5 days per week = 30 hours
  • Out-of-class time spent on creating 3D graphics: 3 weeks, 5 days per week = 45 hours

Total time = 45 + 30 + 45 = 120 hours.

Policies and Procedures

Course Continuity Plan

Should the normal instructional activity on the campus be shortened or interrupted by a campus-wide closing, students will receive information from the instructor or other representative of the college about when and if the course might be continued or completed via Internet, telephone, or United States mail.

Academic Integrity

Simpson’s Statement: In all endeavors, Simpson College expects its students to adhere to the strictest standards of honesty and integrity. In keeping with the College’s mission to develop the student’s critical intellectual skills, while fostering personal integrity and moral responsibility, each student is expected to abide by the Simpson College rules for academic integrity. Academic dishonesty includes (but is not limited to) any form of cheating, plagiarism, unauthorized collaboration, misreporting any absence as college-sponsored or college-sanctioned, submitting a paper written in whole or in part by someone else, or submitting a paper that was previously submitted in whole or in substantial part for another class without prior permission. If the student has any questions about whether any action would constitute academic dishonesty, it is imperative that he or she consult the instructor before taking the action. All cases of substantiated academic dishonesty must be reported to the student’s academic advisor and the Dean for Academic Affairs. For further guidance on these rules and their sanctions, please see the college catalog.

My addition: Students are strongly encouraged to work with one another on homework; however, blatant copying of assignments will be considered cheating.

If I get two assignments that are the same thing, both people will get zeros. Guard your homework carefully, so it is not used as a source for cheating. Don’t e-mail it to a friend so they can ‘use it to learn’ or ‘as a template’. Don’t allow someone to simply read off what you have on your computer screen. By allowing someone to cheat, that will allow the person to get behind in what they understand, and they will never catch up.

A student caught cheating will either get a zero for the assignment, have his/her over-all letter grade reduced, or be flunked from the course. Cheating students may be required to do extra work.

The instructor keeps a database of prior assignments and assignments commonly found on the Internet. The instructor will periodically run scans to look for duplicate assignments. We catch students cheating every. single. year. Don’t do it.

Regardless, cheating is like paying for a gym membership, and then sending someone else to work out for you. It doesn’t make sense. You aren’t going to get stronger that way.

Accommodations for Students with Accessibility Needs

I want everyone in this class to be successful. If you have a physical, sensory, learning, or psychological disability that can interfere with your learning, I want you to receive the accommodations to which you are entitled by law. In order for me to do provide accommodations to a student, the student’s disability must be documented with the Student Accessibility Office. I cannot assist a student with accommodations that I don’t know are needed, so if you need something, please make sure that you either contact me or that you ask Simpson’s Student Accessibility Coordinator, to do so on your behalf. If you have any further questions on the policies and services for students with disabilities, please refer to the academic catalog or go to http://simpson.edu/academics/student-accessibility/

Inclusive Explanation Statement

In this course, each voice in the classroom has something of value to contribute. Please take care to respect the different experiences, beliefs, and values expressed by students and staff involved in this course. We support Simpson’s commitment to diversity, and welcome individuals of all ages, backgrounds, citizenships, disabilities, sex, education, ethnicities, family statuses, genders, gender identities, geographical locations, languages, military experience, political views, races, religions, sexual orientations, socioeconomic statuses, and work experiences.

Sexual and Relationship Misconduct

Simpson College strives to create an environment free from sexual or relationship misconduct of any kind; and in which those who have experienced sexual misconduct get the help and support they need. Simpson’s Sexual and Relationship Misconduct Policy outlines expectations the college has students and employees, including faculty. In order to do all that we can to maintain a safe campus community, and in compliance with Federal law, all employees of the college are expected to report knowledge of alleged sexual misconduct to the Title IX Coordinator. Therefore, if you reveal to me, in conversation, writing, class discussion, or in any other manner, that you have experienced sexual misconduct it is my obligation to share that information with the Title IX Coordinator on our campus. Please know that if this is a step that needs to be taken, I will do my best to involve you in that process so that you know what to expect as a result of the communication with the Title IX Coordinator. To learn more about the expectations the college has of you with respect to sexual misconduct, you can find the full policy here:

http://simpson.edu/sexual-and-relationship-misconduct-policy/